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Sting
Steve Borden (born March 20, 1959), better known by the ring name Sting, is an American retired professional wrestler, actor, author and former bodybuilder. He is currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract. Sting is known for his time spent as the public face of two major professional wrestling promotions: the now-defunct World Championship Wrestling (WCW), which displaced the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) as the leading professional wrestling organization in the United States from 1995 to 1998, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). Borden is regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. having cultivated a legacy over a career spanning more than three decades in which he held 15 world championships. Sting's 14-year tenure with WCW and its predecessor, Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), began in 1987. Dubbed "The Franchise of WCW", he held a total of 15 championships in the promotion – including the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on six occasions, the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship on two occasions and the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on one occasion – and made more pay-per-view (PPV) appearances for the company than any other wrestler. Sting has been described as the WCW counterpart to the WWF's Hulk Hogan. Against Hogan, Sting headlined the highest-grossing PPV event in WCW history at Starrcade in December 1997. Upon the acquisition of WCW by the WWF in March 2001, Sting and his long-term rival Ric Flair were chosen to perform in the main event of the final episode of Nitro. Following the expiration of his contract with WCW's parent company, AOL Time Warner, in March 2002, Borden held talks with the WWF, but ultimately did not join the promotion and instead toured internationally with World Wrestling All-Stars (WWA) – winning the WWA World Heavyweight Championship – before joining the then-upstart TNA in 2003.1 Over the following 11 years, he won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on one further occasion and the TNA World Heavyweight Championship four times, as well as being the inaugural inductee into the TNA Hall of Fame in 2012. He is the only man to hold the NWA, WCW (WWA and WCW International, additionally) and TNA world championships in a career. Previously described by WWE as the greatest wrestler never to have performed for that promotion, Sting finally joined the company in 2014, making his first appearance at Survivor Series and having his debut match at WrestleMania 31 the following year. His last ever bout at Night of Champions in September 2015, marked his sole WWE pay-per-view main event and WWE World Heavyweight Championship contest for the organization. Sting headlined the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2016 on April 2, where he announced his retirement. His induction renders him the first performer to be inducted into both the WWE and TNA Hall of Fame, as well as the second man to be inducted while an active WWE wrestler, after Ric Flair. Sting held 25 total championships throughout his career, including 21 between WCW and TNA. Readers of Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''named him "Most Popular Wrestler of the Year" on four occasions, a record he shares with John Cena. In 2016, Sting was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame. Slam! Sports wrote that he holds "a lofty level of prestige that few will ever touch". In wrestling * '''Finishing moves' ** Scorpion Death Drop (Inverted DDT) ** Scorpion Deathlock * Signature moves ** Diving clothesline ** Diving DDT ** Diving splash ** Dropkick ** Inverted atomic drop ** Knife edge chop ** Military press slam ** One-handed bulldog ** Powerbomb ** Running leaping elbow drop ** Slingshot crossbody ** Sleeper hold ** Stinger Splash – innovated ** Tombstone piledriver ** Vertical suplex * Nicknames ** "The Beastie Boy" ** "The Franchise (of WCW)" ** "The Icon" ** "The Insane Icon" ** "The Man They Call Sting" ** "The Stinger" ** "The Vigilante" * Entrance themes ** Universal Wrestling Federation *** "Castle Walls" by Styx (used as a member of the Blade Runners) *** "Everybody Wants You" by Billy Squier ** Jim Crockett Promotions / World Championship Wrestling *** "Snake City Rock" *** "Turbo Charged / Rattlesnake Whip" *** "Man Called Sting" by Jimmy Papa *** "Crow / Sting" by Jimmy Hart *** "Wolfpac Theme" by C-Murder (used as a member of the nWo Wolfpac) *** "Seek & Destroy" (Live at Woodstock 1999) by Metallica ** Total Nonstop Action Wrestling *** "Stingellica" by Dale Oliver *** "Yours" by TobyMac *** "Slay Me" by Dale Oliver *** "The Main Event Mafia" by Dale Oliver (used as a member of the Main Event Mafia) ** World Wrestling Entertainment *** "Out from the Shadows" by Jim Johnston Championships and accomplishments * Jim Crockett Promotions / World Championship Wrestling ** NWA World Television Championship (1 time) ** NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) ** WCW International World Heavyweight Championship (2 times) ** WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (2 times) ** WCW World Heavyweight Championship (6 times) ** WCW World Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Lex Luger (1), The Giant (1), and Kevin Nash (1) ** Jim Crockett, Sr. Memorial Cup (1988) – with Lex Luger ** Iron Man Tournament (1989) ** London Lethal Lottery Tag Team Tournament (2000) – with Scott Steiner ** King of Cable Tournament (1992) ** European Cup (1994, 2000) ** WCW United States Championship Tournament (1991) ** WCW United States Championship Tournament (1995) ** Battlebowl Battle Royal (1991) ** Third WCW Triple Crown Champion * Pro Wrestling Illustrated ** Comeback of the Year (2006, 2011, 2014) ** Match of the Year (1991) with Lex Luger vs. the Steiner Brothers at SuperBrawl I ** Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (1988) ** Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (1990) ** Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (1991, 1992, 1994, 1997) ** Wrestler of the Year (1990) ** Ranked #1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1992 ** Ranked #15 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003 ** Ranked #52 of the top 100 tag teams of the PWI Years with Lex Luger in 2003 * Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame ** Class of 2018 * Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ** NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) ** TNA World Heavyweight Championship (4 times) ** TNA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kurt Angle ** TNA Hall of Fame (Class of 2012) ** TNA Year End Awards *** Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (2007) *** TNA Match of the Year (2007) vs. Kurt Angle (at Bound for Glory 2007) *** TNA Match of the Year (2009) vs. A.J. StylesSting (at Bound for Glory 2009) * Universal Wrestling Federation ** UWF World Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Eddie Gilbert (2) and Rick Steiner (1) * World Wrestling All-Stars ** WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * World Wrestling Entertainment ** WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2016) ** Slammy Awards (2 times) *** "This is Awesome" Moment of the Year (2014) – Debuting to help Team Cena defeat Team Authority at Survivor Series *** "Surprise Return of the Year" (2015) – as Seth Rollins' statue, and attacks Rollins on Raw * Wrestling Observer Newsletter ** Match of the Year (1988) vs. Ric Flair at Clash of the Champions I ** Most Charismatic (1988, 1992) ** Most Improved (1988) ** Most Unimproved (1990) ** Best Babyface (1992) ** Worst Worked Match of the Year (1995) vs. Tony Palmore at Battle 7 ** Worst Worked Match of the Year (2011) vs. Jeff Hardy at Victory Road (owing to Hardy's inebriation) ** Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2016) Category:Alumni